Canadian Hematology Society (CHS)

The Canadian Hematology Society (CHS) is a professional association, founded in 1971.

The first annual meeting of the society was held in the Richelieu Room of the Chateau Laurier in Ottawa on the 20th of January 1971, with fifty-six members present. The draft bylaws were presented by the executive and approved. R. Kennedy Smiley was appointed as the first President with Al Cousineau as Vice-President and W. Corbett as Secretary-Treasurer.

The main goals of the CHS are to maintain the integrity and vitality of the specialty of hematology, by participating with the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada in designing training programs for our successors, encouraging and rewarding scholarly research, and providing a forum for communication and mutual support for all of our colleagues in both community and in academic settings.

The CHS offers to members an interactive web portal that is linked to the main website. The web portal is designed for online networking, consultation and sharing of information on a range of topics, webinars and features information about the availability and coverage of drugs across the Canadian provinces and territories.

The flagship publication of the CHS, The Microenvironment newsletter, is very widely received and well-read. The society also has several popular awards programs. The annual Research Abstract Awards are presented annually to winners in different categories of young scientists; the most prestigious of these awards is the John Crookston Award. The CHS Paper of the Year Award nominations and winning papers demonstrate impressive and ground-breaking Canadian research. The RK Smiley Award, named for the CHS founding president, provides start up grants of $10,000 aimed at pilot projects which are expected to lead to larger follow-up studies.

The CHS currently has 515 members. The governance structure includes bylaws which were revised in 2014, and a six-member Executive Board. The Executive Board meets three times per year. The entire CHS membership is invited to the CHS Annual Gala Awards and Dinner, held in December each year.

The CHS is delighted to host the 37th World Congress of the International Society of Hematology (ISH) on September 13-16, 2018 in the East Convention Centre in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. This event will include over 100 educational lectures, and symposia and will feature international speakers with over 2,000 attendees from around the globe.

CHS Website : www.canadianhematologysociety.org/contact-us/

2016-2017 Executive Committee

	President Dr. Lynn Savoie Calgary, Alberta
	Past-President Dr. Aaron Schimmer Toronto, Ontario
	Vice-President Dr. Nicole Laferriere Thunder Bay, Ontario
	Treasurer Dr. Hassan Sibai Toronto, Ontario
	Secretary Dr. Vikas Gupta Toronto, Ontario
	Executive Vice-President Dr. Gail Rock Ottawa, Ontario